Here are the Big Country volleyball playoff pairings, results (through Nov. 7):
Continue reading “Big Country volleyball playoff pairings, results (through Nov. 7)”
DISTRICT 4-2A DI WEEK 11 REPORT: Ozona rallies past Ballinger; Forsan thumps Sonora
Ozona 36, Ballinger 35 — The Lions rallied from a 35-14 halftime deficit to hand the Bearcats their second one-point loss in a row.
Ozona (5-5, 4-2) outscored Ballinger 22-0 in the second half, turning a late onside kick recovery into a touchdown run for what proved to be the winning points. This came a week after the Bearcatsfell 42-41 to Sonora.
DISTRICT 5-3A DII WEEK 11 REPORT: Hamilton, Tolar cruise to comfortable wins; Millsap locks up district title
Hamilton 44, Comanche 0 — Oliver Summers passed for 180 yards and two touchdowns, and Ricky Shanks ran for 149 yards and two scores to lead the Bulldogs to a blowout win over the Indians.
Hamilton (6-4, 5-2), which nabbed the district’s No. 3 playoff seed behind champion Millsap (8-2, 6-1) and Tolar (6-4, 5-2), also got 137 yards and a TD receiving from Madden Weaver in outgaining Comanche 389-134.
DISTRICT 3-3A DII WEEK 11 REPORT: Stanton tops Coahoma for district title; Grape Creek nabs No. 4 seed
Stanton 21, Coahoma 6 — Nicholas Isemann ran for 100 yards and Hagan Hale added 92 yards and a touchdown to lift the Buffaloes to a two-score win over Coahoma, clinching SHS’ first district championship since 1999.
Stanton also got a 35-yard passing touchdown from Jayden Hinojosa to Braydn Garcia in the win, which improved the Buffs (6-4 overall) to 5-0 in district play.
DISTRICT 3-2A DII WEEK 11 REPORT: Roscoe, Lockney Tahoka, Ralls heading into playoffs
Roscoe 13, Crosbyton 0
The Plowboys (5-5, 2-1) managed only 268 total yards, but it was enough to secure the top seed in the district.
They will open the playoffs with Eldorado (3-7) on Friday at 7 p.m. in San Angelo.
Crosbyton closed its season at 2-7 and 1-4.
DISTRICT 5-4A DII WEEK 11 REPORT: Tigers sweep through district
Glen Rose 76, Venus 0
Judd Connally threw for 202 yards and four scores and Thomas Littlejohn rushed for 120 yards and two more TDs to lift Glen Rose to an easy win over struggling Venus.
With the No. 1 seed secured, the Tigers (7-3, 3-0) will open postseason play with Ponder (5-5) on Thursday at 7 p.m. in Crowley.
Venus finished at 0-10 and 0-3.
DISTRICT 3-3A DI WEEK 11 REPORT: Wall clinches outright title with win over Ingram Moore; Llano nips Early
Wall 37, Ingram Moore 17 — Gunner King threw for 320 yards and four touchdowns, and gunner Garza ran for 119 yards and a score to help the Hawks claim a three-touchdown win over the Warrions and clinch an outright district title for fifth consecutive season.
Hudson Surber (5-98, 1 TD), Jager Thompson (5-80, 1 TD) and Evan Boehle (2-53, 1 TD) all had productive receiving days for Wall, which closed its regular season at 9-1 overall and 4-0 in district play.
DISTRICT 6-2A DII WEEK 11 REPORT: Haskell, Windthorst, Archer City are Week 11 winners
Haskell 60, Seymour 27
Haegen Pinkerton threw for 224 yards and four scores and rushed for 169 yards and three more scores to lead Haskell over Seymour.
The Indians (7-3 5-1), who will gained 503 yards as a team, will face Clarendon (4-5) in the bi-district round on Friday at 7 p.m. in Childress.
DISTRICT 4-4A DII WEEK 11 REPORT: Brock blasts Mineral Wells to clinch outright title; Graham routs Iowa Park
Brock 56, Mineral Wells 3 — Holt Frazier completed 12 of 14 passes for 183 yards and three touchdowns, and Bryer McDonald ran for 51 yards and two scores as the Eagles closed out their regular season and perfect run through district play with a blowout win over the Rams.
Jack Farhat (5-65) and Traycen Thomas also ran for TDs for Brock (9-1, 5-0), which got receiving scores from Casen Christenson (5-59), Jett Kerr (2-57) and Farhat (1-30) in the win.
DISTRICT 13-4A DII WEEK 11 REPORT: La Vega, Robinson, Brownwood are the Week 11 victors
Waco La Vega 84, Waco Connally 7
Kourtney Parr hit 12 of 13 passes for 156 yards and four TDs while Corey’En Montgomery and Benjamin Thompson rushed for two scores each to lead La Vega to an easy win over Connally.
La Vega closed the regular season at 10-0 and 5-0; Connally finished at 0-10 and 0-5.
DISTRICT 2-4A DII WEEK 11 REPORT: Big Spring closes regular season by routing Snyder; Seminole wins league title
Big Spring 48, Snyder 6 — Javon Jackson ran for 206 yards and five touchdowns and passed for 145 yards and another score to lead the Steers to a blowout win over the Tigers and into the Region I-4A Division II playoff bracket.
Big Spring, which won its last two games to go 3-7 overall and 2-3 in district play, finished tied for third in the District 2 standings with Pecos (5-5, 2-3) and Fort Stockton (2-8, 2-3), but advanced to the postseason as the league’s No. 3 playoff seed by virtue of the district’s tiebreaker rules.
DISTRICT 12-4A DI WEEK 11 REPORT: Stephenville, Jarrell, China Spring win in Week 11
Stephenville 56, Marble Falls 6
Trot Jordan threw for 258 yards and five touchdowns as Stephenville (10-0, 5-0) concluded an unbeaten regular season.
Stephenville will open postseason play with a bi-district date against Navasota (6-4) on Friday at 7 p.m. in Temple.
Marble Falls finished its season at 3-7 and 1-4.
DISTRICT 4-3A DII WEEK 11 REPORT: Jacksboro, Merkel win, Breckenridge falls
Jacksboro 56, WF City View 6
Hoytt Wesson hit 22 of 24 throws for 469 yards and six TDs to lead Jacksboro to a lopsided win over Wichita Falls City View.
The Tigers (9-1, 5-0) now head into postseason play where they will face Grape Creek (2-8) on Thursday in Brownwood.
City View finished at 0-10 and 0-5.
DISTRICT 2-3A DI WEEK 11 REPORT: Jim Ned, Kermit and Clyde all score wins
Jim Ned 38, Odessa Compass Academy 7
Despite an 0-5 start in their non-district schedule, the Indians (3-7, 3-2) roared back to life in district play, clinching a No. 3 seed with a win over Odessa Compass.
Jim Ned will face Bushland (7-3) in the bi-district round on Friday at 7 p.m. at Lowrey Field in Lubbock.
Compass finished at 3-7 and 2-3.
DISTRICT 7-2A DII WEEK 11 REPORT: Albany, Stamford, Miles win in Week 11
Albany 52, Hamlin 0
Clay Chapman threw for 246 yards and two scores and Jakobi Roberson rushed for 83 yards and three more TDs to lead Albany over Hamlin.
The Lions (7-3, 4-2) will face Crawford (7-3) in the bi-district round of the playoffs on Thursday at 7 p.m. in Weatherford.
Hamlin ended its season at 3-7 and 1-5.
DISTRICT 5-2A DI WEEK 11 REPORT: Cisco, Anson, Hawley close regular season with wins
Cisco 37, De Leon 20
De Leon entered this district title game with the most explosive offense in the league.
It left with an uncharacteristic 274 yards in total offense and it’s second loss of the season.
Cisco (7-3, 4-1), which has had its share of disappointments, closed the regular season on a three-game winning streak and the district championship.
GAME REPORT: No. 4 Wylie volleyball advances to regional finals with win over No. 3 Eagle Mountain
STEPHENVILLE — The Wylie volleyball team continued its impressive run through the Region I-5A Division II playoff bracket Friday night, topping Fort Worth Eagle Mountain 29-27, 25-12, 23-25, 25-19 to advance to the regional finals for the first time as a Class 5A program.
The Lady Bulldogs, who bowed out in the regional semis each of the past two seasons, used a fast start Friday to make sure that wouldn’t be the case for a third consecutive year.
And in doing so, coach Shay Cox’s squad earned a meeting next week with the top-ranked 5A DII team in the state, Argyle, at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday in Lipan.
GAME STORY: Wylie digs out of early hole to beat Cooper 49-32, lock up home playoff game
With a home playoff game riding on its outcome, the 2026 Southtown Showdown featured some of the highest stakes of any matchup in the series’ nine-year history. And for most of the first half, the annual meeting between crosstown rivals Cooper and Wylie looked poised to be one of the series’ most competitive games as well.
But after falling behind 10-0 to start the game, Wylie responded with a 42-7 run over the middle two quarters, using touchdowns on both sides of the halftime break to build a three-score lead it would protect the rest of the way in a 49-32 win Friday at Hugh Sandifer Stadium.
The victory improved Wylie (7-3 overall) to 5-1 in District 2-5A Division II action, locking up the league’s No. 2 playoff seed for the Bulldogs, who will host District 1 No. 3 seed El Paso Del Valle (6-4) next week. Cooper, which finished third at 6-4 and 4-2, will have to travel more than 450 miles west, meanwhile, to take on District 1 runner-up Canutillo (8-2) in its bi-district matchup.
BIG COUNTRY PREPS GAME OF THE WEEK: Clyde wins district title in thriller vs. Sweetwater
CLYDE — Entering Friday’s Big Country Preps Game of the Week, the last time the Clyde Bulldogs finished the regular season unbeaten, Harry Truman was the President of the United States.
That streak is officially over now that Clyde came from behind to top Sweetwater, 28-21, in a true Big Country Classic at Bulldog Stadium.
Devan Wright threw for 203 yards, rushed for 151 and accounted for every Clyde score with two TD passes and two rushing touchdowns to help the Bulldogs (10-0, 5-0) clinch the District 2-3A DI title.
Sweetwater (7-3, 4-1) was led by Caiden Ortiz with 111 yards passing and one TD and 58 yards rushing and two more scores in a defensive battle that many expected to be a shootout.
GAME STORY: Brownwood blitzes Salado 44-20 to claim No. 3 playoff seed
BROWNWOOD — To put together a three-game win streak entering the playoffs after a 2-5 start this season, the Brownwood Lions had to realize a basic fundamental of football. They had to practice during the week the way they wanted to play on Friday nights.
“We finally realized that we had to take practice more seriously,” Brownwood running back Trent Buffington said after rushing for three touchdowns and a career-best 204 yards Friday night during the Lions’ 44-20 win over the Salado Eagles at Gordon Wood Stadium.
“We finally realized that we had to work harder in practice. Once we figured that out, it has made a huge impact on how we’re playing on Friday night,” Buffington said.
Friday’s win gave Brownwood the No. 3 seed from District 13-4A for the Class 4A Division II playoffs that start next weekend. As the third seed, the Lions (5-5 overall, 3-2 in district) avoided undefeated and state-ranked Wimberley in the opening round of the postseason.
GAME STORY: Abilene High falls to Wollforth Frenship, No. 4 seed in postseason
The final week of the football season always leads to unique scenarios for teams in the playoff hunt, and Friday night was no different for Mike Fullen and his Abilene High Eagles at Shotwell Stadium in a District 2-5A Division I game with Wolfforth Frenship.
AHS was in prime position to claim the second playoff seed and a home playoff game with a win or close loss and was all but guaranteed the third seed otherwise — barring a loss by 14 or more points.
Either of those finishes would have put the Eagles on a crash course for a quick matchup in the playoffs with No. 8 ranked Denton Ryan. What few people saw coming was a surprising 35-21 loss to the Tigers that caused the Eagles to drop all the way to the fourth seed in the district.
Big Country Preps Girls Basketball Position Rankings: Posts
After focusing on the top guards and forwards the Big Country has to offer the past two nights, it’s time to shift our attention to the paint.
For the final installment in our three-part position rankings series, we list our top-10 post players for the 2026-27 season with some others to watch.
We hope you’ve enjoyed reading through these rankings, and make sure to come back next week when we’ll feature the top boys basketball players in the Big Country.
VIDEO: Abilene High coach Mike Fullen breaks down regular-season finale against Wolfforth Frenship
WOLFFORTH FRENSHIP (5-4, 4-2) AT ABILENE HIGH (6-3, 5-1)
7 p.m. Friday, Shotwell Stadium, Abilene
VIDEO: Cooper’s Scott Stewart, Wylie’s Clay Martin preview key Southtown Showdown matchup
COOPER (6-3, 4-1) AT WYLIE (6-3, 4-1)
7 p.m. Friday, Hugh Sandifer Stadium, Abilene
GAME STORY: Abilene Christian falls to Lucas Christian in TAPPS state quarterfinals
The Abilene Christian football team saw its first season under Justin Gorman come to an end Thursday night with a 64-48 loss to Lucas Christian Academy in a TAPPS Division II Large School state quarterfinal matchup at Larry & Eyleen Crain Field.
Nate Presley threw for 343 yards and three scores, adding a fourth touchdown on the ground, but it wasn’t enough to lead the hosts to a come-from-behind win.
The Warriors got six touchdowns (3 rushing, 3 receiving) from Joshua Stoltzfus while Jacob Barineau returned two fumbles for defensive touchdowns that proved to be the difference in the game.
Big Country Preps Girls Basketball Position Rankings: Forwards
After kicking off our girls basketball position rankings series with the guards on Wednesday, we now turn our attention to the forwards.
For the second installment in our three-part series, we rank the area’s top 15 players at that position with some others to watch for in 2026-27.
We hope you enjoy our list.
Big Country Preps’ Pick ‘Em Panel (Week 11)
Each week here at Big Country Preps, we’ll post our picks for all of that week’s 11-man games and select six-man games, in addition to the results of our weekly fan polls for each matchup.
Disagree with our picks or the fan poll consensus? Let us know in the comments section below.
BIG COUNTRY PREPS GAME OF THE WEEK: Clyde, Sweetwater clash for district title
LAST WEEK: 54-11 .831
SEASON TOTAL: 514-121, .809
BIG COUNTRY PREPS GAME OF THE WEEK
SWEETWATER (7-2, 4-0) AT CLYDE (9-0, 4-0)
This game has been circled on our calendars for weeks and with good reason.
A winner-take-all matchup for the District 2-3A DI championship between a pair of teams which are averaging a combined 103 points per game?
It doesn’t get any more fun than that.
Big Country Preps Girls Basketball Position Rankings: Guards
With the girls basketball season getting underway this week, it’s time to take a look at the local and area players who will be making the biggest impact for their teams over the next few months.
For the first installment in a three-part series that will cover all positions, we’ll be focusing on the Big Country’s top guards, ranking our top 15 with a list of others to watch for the 2026-27 season.
We hope you enjoy reading through our selections.
MIKE LEE’S WHERE ARE THEY NOW? Former Brownwood lineman Isaac Gray blocking for No. 2-ranked football team
Note: If you know of a former Big Country Prep athlete now performing in college or professional sports, contact Mike Lee at michaellee7@att.net.
Of all the 2022-23 Brownwood ISD signees in multiple sports, Isaac Gray quietly seemed the happiest with his decision to sign with the little-known — at least around Brownwood — NCAA Division II Hardin University Bisons football team.
Gray was a 275-pound lineman, and Harding — located in Searcy, Ark. — was known for its running game. Offensive linemen are rarely asked their preferences, but they prefer to fire out, hit a defender and drive them backwards. Passing offenses popular today ask linemen to stand up, step back and play from almost a retreating position or posture.
Gray played in 29 games but just seven starts during the last three seasons for Harding. A career interior lineman, he even spent the 2025 season as a blocking tight end.
But this season, Gray has started all nine games as an interior lineman for Harding, a recent NCAA Division II football power that is 9-0 and ranked No. 2 nationally.
FEATURE: Brooklyn Bird beat medical odds to become Eastland’s No. 2 runner at regional
Photos contributed by Lee Lewis and Brooklyn Bird
The accomplishment of being the No. 43 overall finisher – and No. 2 on her team – out of 221 runners at last week’s regional cross country meet hardly tells the story of Brooklyn Bird’s comeback.
The first sign that something was wrong came near the end of the 2025 cross country season, when Bird couldn’t finish her daily workouts at Eastland High School. A December doctor’s visit led to a January diagnosis of Langerhans cell histiocytosis.
LCH is a rare disorder, affecting 1 in 250,000 children in the United States. LCH commonly targets the skeletal system with destructive lesions. In Bird’s case, LCH formed a lytic lesion on her skull. She required a surgical procedure to remove the mass and clean out the affected bone.
GAME REPORT: Wylie volleyball dominant in area-round sweep of El Paso Del Valle
MONAHANS — The Wylie volleyball team’s drive to its area-round matchup against El Paso Del Valle lasted far longer than the match itself, as the seventh-ranked Lady Bulldogs cruised past the Lady Conquistadores for a 25-11, 25-11, 25-12 sweep on Monday to earn a trip to the Region I-5A Division II semifinals.
The victory was the 20th in a row for Wylie, which opened the playoffs last week with a sweep of Wolfforth Frenship.
With Monday’s outcome, the Lady Bulldogs (36-4 overall) advance to take on the winner of Tuesday’s match between No. 6 Fort Worth Eagle Mountain (34-7) and No. 12 Joshua (32-6) later this week at a time, date and place to be determined.
GAME STORY: Wall volleyball continues torrid pace in area-round sweep of Tolar
CLYDE — The Wall volleyball team entered Monday night’s Region I-3A Division II area-round playoff matchup at Bulldog Gym riding a 39-set winning streak as part of a string of 15 consecutive match wins.
In front of a raucous crowd, the Lady Hawks showed why they’re a favorite to claim the regional championship and a serious state champion contender with a 25-15, 25-22, 25-10 sweep of Tolar.
Lady Hawks coach Kimberly Branch said it would be impossible to single out any particular player from the match — and the current winning streak as a whole — because of the team-first mentality the squad has embraced since being swept by Boyd in the 2025 state semifinals.
SIX-MAN REWIND: Several district championship races decided during eventful Week 10 slate
Believe it or not, we’re nearing the end of the regular season, and the six-man playoff picture continues to take shape across the Big Country Preps coverage area.
Week 10 certainly helped clear things up in a number of districts, which saw de facto district championship games played in the penultimate week of the regular season.
As is custom each week here in our “Six-Man Rewind” column, it’s time to take a look at the team and individual performances that made the biggest impact on the area six-man scene. We hope you enjoy this look back at the week that was, and encourage you to check out our Six-Man/Class 1A Central page for more information on your favorite team(s).
BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Connally edges out Frazier for top spot
You know a weekly award is tough to come by when you need a 166.0 quarterback rating to edge out your closest competitor.
Glen Rose junior Judd Connally has taken the Big Country Preps Player of the Week award after hitting 13 of 15 passes for 219 yards and six touchdowns in last week’s 78-8 rout of a 6-3 Kemp team.
WEEK 11 FAN POLLS … Pick this week’s 11-man winners!
Each week here at Big Country Preps, we offer fans the chance to pick the winners of all games involving our local and area football teams. The results of these weekly polls, which will close at 5 p.m. each Thursday, will be included in our weekly Pick ‘Em Panel.
Here are the games for Week 11:
Continue reading “WEEK 11 FAN POLLS … Pick this week’s 11-man winners!”
DISTRICT 8-2A DII WEEK 10 REPORT: Mart, Wortham pick up victories; Santo has last game wiped out in forfeit
Mart 61, Hubbard 6 — Demorris Rhodes ran for 122 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Panthers to a blowout win over the Jaguars.
Octavious Gillaspy added 113 yards and one TD passing and 52 yards and two scores rushing for Mart (4-5, 3-2), which also got productive days from Orlando Preston (2-74, 1 TD rushing) and Tyson Kilbride (3-86, 1 TD receiving).
DISTRICT 7-2A DI WEEK 10 REPORT: Mason routs Brady; Johnson City rallies past Coleman; San Saba topples Bangs
Mason 48, Brady 0 — The Punchers dominated the Bulldogs from the outset, racing out to a 34-0 halftime lead on their way to a shutout victory.
Mason stayed perfect both for the season (9-0) and in district play (4-0) with the victory heading into next week’s regular-season finale at Coleman.
DISTRICT 4-2A DI WEEK 10 REPORT: Sonora wins thriller over Ballinger; Christoval upends Forsan
Sonora 42, Ballinger 41 — Aaron Segura passed for 572 yards and four touchdowns, hitting Wyatt Killough 11 times for 255 yards and three of those scores, to lead the Broncos to a huge win over the Bearcats in a battle of the district’s top two teams.
Fernando Arredondo and Evan Arredondo also went over the 100-yard receiving mark for Sonora (8-1, 5-0), which raced out to a 28-7 second-quarter lead before holding off Ballinger the rest of the way.
DISTRICT 5-3A DII WEEK 10 REPORT: Hamilton knocks off Millsap; Tolar can’t keep pace with Clifton
Hamilton 34, Millsap 21 — Oliver Summers passed for 259 yards and two touchdowns, hitting Madden Weaver for 183 yards and both of those scores, in a key district win over the league-leading Bulldogs.
Ricky Shank added 150 yards and a TD rushing for Hamilton (5-4, 4-2), which outgained Millsap 511-392 and cruised to a 28-6 lead by halftime.
DISTRICT 3-2A DII WEEK 10 REPORT: Roscoe defeats Tahoka to stay in title hunt
Roscoe 26, Tahoka 6 — The Plowboys (4-5, 3-1)threw a wrench into the machinery by knocking off Tahoka and forcing a three-way tie for first place in the district standings.
Roscoe will close the regular season against Crosbyton (2-6, 1-3) next week with a renewed shot at winning district.
DISTRICT 5-4A DII WEEK 10 REPORT: Glen Rose the only active team in Week 10
Glen Rose 78, Kemp 8 — Judd Connally threw for 381 yards and six TDs and Thomas Littlejohn rushed for 81 yards and two TDs to lift the Tigers in a rout of Kemp.
Glen Rose (6-3, 2-0) locked up the district title with the win. The Tigers will close their regular season with Venus (0-9, 0-2) next week.
DISTRICT 13-4A DII WEEK 10 REPORT: Brownwood, Salado, La Vega all win
Brownwood 66, Waco Connally 7 — Ezra House rushed for 171 yards and two scores and Trent Buffington rushed for 111 yards and three more TDs to lead Brownwood (4-5, 2-2) to a blowout win over Waco Connally.
Brownwood raced out to a 29-0 lead by the end of the first quarter and had extended that advantage to 53-0 by the break. Connally fell to 0-9 and 0-4.